The Wanderer
by DayDreamingDormouse
Summary: "Sometimes the slightest things change the directions of our lives, the merest breath of a circumstance, a random moment that connects like a meteorite striking the earth..." Bryce Courtenay Quite unwillingly fate has brought a new player, who will change the future for better or worse, into the world of One Piece. AU, please R&R.
1. Chapter 1

**A/N: Hi folks. I had this plot bunny in my head for a while and after getting a plan what I wanted to achieve, I decided to give it a go. So have fun, read and review!**

**No copyright infringement intended. The rights to Harry Potter and One Piece belong to J. and Eiichiro Oda respectively. The plot is mine. **

**BETA WANTED: Right now a friend of mine looks over the chapters for grammar mistakes and obvious plotholes, but I would like someone to help me, who is a writer in the One Piece fandom himself/herself and whose mother tongue is English (having a good grip on all those damn comma rules would be appreciated very much XD). If you'd like to do the job, please send me a private message. **

Chapter 1

The sea was vast and to find a single person on one of the thousands of islands nearly impossible. It needed a huge portion of luck and a bit of something else to get to the exact same place as the person you wanted to meet. The young man, who was reading in a book, had this something else. If his information was correct, and it usually was, then he would find the Whitebeard pirates on the next island. Grinning he shut the book and put it back in his bag. With a stroke of his hand he infused his magic carpet with the coordinates of his goal and the carpet, muted in colors but with a beautiful design of magical creatures, adjusted its course slightly and then sped away.

The young man laid on his back and watched the sparse clouds go by. It had been a long time since the last meeting with Whitebeard. Then the other had been a young man himself. The man flying over the sea could just hope that the clothes he had chosen to wear to the reunion, would trigger the memory of Whitebeard. The three-piece suit was made out of a light, cream colored wool, he wore a white button-down shirt underneath the waistcoat and a dark green tie, the same color as the ribbon on his boater. With the cream colored shoes and the cane with the golden lion head, that were still in his bag he would look like quite the gentleman. Snickering he put the hat over his head to take a short nap. It was still quite the journey and the magic carpet would let him know, when he reached the island.

* * *

The sun was sinking over the horizon in a spectacle of colors, that went unheeded, as multiple bonfires were lit on the shore of a small, wooded island. Rowboats were lined on the sand and four big ships were anchored in deeper waters before the island. The pirates had landed early that day, to restock on fresh water, timber, medicinal herbs and food. Though the island was uninhabited there was enough material to be found with a bit of hard work. A group had hunted dinner in form of wild boars, bears, the lone giant lion and even a few alligators. If one of the pirates hadn't said that the predators tasted quite good, as he had eaten it a lot as a child, and their hide would sell for a good amount of bellis, the infested river would have been left alone. As it was, the young man with the name of Ace was dragging a bunch of the reptiles, bound at their tails, to the nearest fire. Thinking of hunts long ago he prepared to skin them, with a grin on his face.

"Yoi, Ace!"

He looked up and saw Marco from the first division coming his way. "Looks like a good hunt. We can sell the skin at Sabaody Island. What are you doing with the rest, yoi?"

Ace lifted a finger and lit it. The little flame was casting a shadow on his face and made the grin on it look quite mad. "Cook the flesh and eat it. Haven't had it since I left my home island."

Marco cocked an eyebrow and poked one of the alligators. "Are you sure, yoi?"

"I'll save you a bite. I'd like to go again tomorrow. There are still a ton of these beasts out there. And I found deer tracks."

"Talk to Pops about it. He hasn't said yet how long we'll stay here."

Ace nodded and got back to skinning the animal to his feet. It was an unspoken rule that the pirates could hunt as much as they liked when there was time for it, as long as they didn't destroy the livelihood of the inhabitants of the island they were on or decimated the animal population too much. But Ace and his group were experienced hunters.

"Yoi." Ace looked up again. "Do you think that we've got enough fires going, so we won't be overrun by beasts?" Marco was pointing over his shoulder to the lion that was skinned and cut into pieces by another man. "They are quite huge here."

Ace scoffed. That thing was a kitten compared to the tiger lord on Dawn Island. "It should be alright", he answered. And if it wasn't, there would be enough pirates not too drunk out of their minds around to cut too curious animals down.

"When those are done, you'll sit at Pops's fire, unless you've got to settle something with your division?"

"Nah, they'll be fine", Ace answered and Marco went away, to talk to another of the hunters.

While Ace was occupied with the alligators, aided by two cooks of the crew, who had cooked reptile flesh before, the festivities started. The booze, that had been brought down from the ships and kept cool in shallow waters, was distributed to the individual fires and someone had started to make music. Humming to "Binks' Sake" under his breath, Ace loaded his plate with the meat he'd cooked and then went to collect more to eat. Juggling the plates loaded with his favorite foods he went to the bonfire in the middle of the place. He stared down the few new crew members, who thought that he was distributing food, because he had so much. They would learn quickly, that he didn't like to share what he saw as his, especially food.

He found a place next to Marco and after setting down his plates, he settled himself in the sand and accepted a mug full of beer. For a while he concentrated just on his food and drink, enjoying the relaxed atmosphere after a hard days work. He loved those evenings, listening to the clamor of his nakama, not having to worry about anything. He felt at peace.

It took him a while to look up from his feast. For a couple of minutes now the mood at the bonfire had turned from boisterous to wary. Something was in the air. Ace looked around in the faces of his fellow commanders. They tried to behave like they were enjoying themselves, but Ace could see that they were tense, some were even grasping the sheaths of their weapons tightly. He looked up at Whitebeard. The captain was laughing about something Marco had said. Chugging his beer down, he held the mug out to Marco to refill.

He poured the drink from a barrel next to him. When he sat it down again, Ace could hear the remaining liquid slosh inside it. "Pops, this barrel is nearly done and the others are empty. Me and Ace will go around and get more, yoi."

Having just taken a mouthful of his own beverage, Ace swallowed hastily, beating his chest when the liquid got down the wrong pipe. He looked questioningly at the commander of the first division. That barrel had sounded quite full and he knew, that a few unopened ones stood behind him and the other pirates at their fire.

"Gurarara." Whitebeard took the mug. Then he looked at Marco with a glint in his eyes. "Take care."

Marco nodded, standing up, and looked at Ace like what he was waiting for. Scrambling Ace got to his feet and to Marco side. "Something is coming. And it is coming fast", he was warned in a whisper, while they walked in the direction of the shoreline to the next fire. He threw an arm around Aces shoulders and began laughing. Ace didn't know why, but that made him lose the tenseness in his body a bit.

"Now, watch, listen and memorize it." They had reached the fire and Marco addressed them: "Yoi, listen up. Someone brought banana bread, but didn't offer Pops something off it. You know how much he likes it. Anyone an idea who brought it?"

Some men looked like they didn't know, if Marco had gone mad or had drunken too much. They soon were nudged or involved in a conversation. An older man stood up and stretched. "Nah, but I can ask around." He walked away. Ace followed his movements with his eyes. A moment later two others stood up together and marched in the opposite direction.

"We'll let you know, when we find something", a woman said with a flirtatious smile and Marco laughed.

"You'll do that, yoi." With that he started walking again.

Ace hastened to follow. "Banana bread?"

"Well, I can't go around yelling "Code Red" when I don't know what's happening, ne? But everyone will be informed to keep watch without attracting attention." He clapped the younger mans shoulder. "Don't you worry. You'll learn every codeword with time." Looking at his companion, he saw that Ace was standing there, slightly slumped, a snot bubble coming out of his nose. "YOI! Now is not the time for that!" He hit Ace with a balled fist and sent the younger man flying into the sand.

"Nani?" Ace spat a bit of sand out of his mouth and looked up at Marco, who looked as cheerful as always, with just a bit of irritation and nervousness in his eyes.

"Come on now, Ace. It is nearly here."

They were still a few bonfires down from the shoreline, when Marco twitched and changed his arms into fiery, blue wings, part of his phoenix transformation. "This is far enough, yoi!", he yelled and took flight. There was a flurry of people standing up, arming themselves and looking up in the sky.

Ace searched the sky. As far as he could see, there was nothing there. But that didn't mean anything. He took note of Marcos flying patterns. First he had flown towards his target, now he was being forced to retreat backwards, swerving right and left. For a moment he seemed to have slowed down the unknown flying object, but then he looked up and cursed. "Show yourself!" He raced after the thing.

"That would be no fun", Ace heard a male, friendly sounding tone, a chuckle in his voice. It tickled his memory, but now was not the time for reminiscing.

Aces hands were lit and he held them over his head, preparing an attack he had experimented with for a while now but hadn't gotten down quite like he wanted. "Horatubi!", he yelled and eerily green-yellow dots flew up in the sky. He spread his arms, so that the firefly like flames would cover more ground. As he had hoped, there was a bubble like shape where his flames didn't reach. "Hidaruma!" The flames erupted and engulfed the space, making it visible for a moment.

"Nice trick", the voice said again, sounding slightly impressed. Power was building around the bubble and then flying in Aces direction. Before he could evade it, he was hit with a nearly clear beam and a rope bound itself tightly around his whole body, snapping his arms to his side and ending his attack. He fell to the floor, while the stranger flew over him, followed by Marco.

Gnashing his teeth Ace burned the ropes and ran through the masses of pirates, some of whom were aiming and firing their pistols and other long range weapons. Bullets hitting the bubble made it visible where it was, so that everyone could follow it easier, but they didn't stop its way towards Whitebeard. The old man was standing now, a grin on his face and a dangerous glint in his eyes.

Ace couldn't be sure, but it seemed like the bubble was slowing down the more it came into the captains range. Whitebeard raised a hand and gripped the air. With his power he caused the air to bend to his will and Ace could hear the person shout, as the bubble became completely visible and fell onto the ground, bounced once and then rolled into a fire pit, taking men and women in its way down.

Marco landed next to the captain, while Ace raced towards them, stopping slightly before the old man. While the pirates, that had been brought down, stood up groaning and brushed the sand and ash from their clothes, the man in the bubble sat on the ground and laughed. "That was fun, don't do it again."

Slowly he was rising from the ground and it showed, that he was sitting on a carpet. Brushing himself down, he stood up on it. He held his hands up in a pacifying gesture, when swords and pistols were raised in his direction. The carpet inched forward and the pirates reacted with closing in around him. "Now, really, there is no point to that." The man was flying over their heads and a stray bullet showed that the shield around carpet and man was still intact. A few feet before Ace the carpet landed. A cane, that had been lying to the mans feet next to a colorful and worn looking backpack, flew into his hand and the man doffed his hat.

With a grin he bowed before Whitebeard. "Long time no see. You have grown old."

Ace was surprised when the old man just laughed uproariously and sat down again. Everyone around them relaxed and even Marco loosened his stance. Still, Ace couldn't kill the feeling that this man was to dangerous to let his guard down and flames danced on his arms.

"Now, little firefly, none of that."

It felt like someone had doused him with water and his flames died. This voice. This nickname. He hadn't heard them in years. His eyes roamed over the man. He wasn't like Ace remembered him. But on the other hand Ace knew that one could expect the unexpected from this man.

"Wanderer-ojisan?", he heard himself ask and then blushed, when he felt all eyes on himself.

"You know him?", Marco asked. "Is he dangerous, yoi?"

"Yes", Ace answered, while Whitebeard said: "More than you will ever know." at the same time.

"Not to you, I assure you. I just came to pay a long overdue visit. But I didn't think that I would meet the little firefly here, too. Nice coincidence."

"Gurarara, long overdue indeed. What have you done the last forty years?"

"WHAT?" Most of the pirates were floored. The man clad in white, looking like a noble, didn't look a day older than twenty.

He twirled his cane. "Oh this and that. I even got myself a bounty, seven years ago or so."He sounded quite proud and looked at Ace.

"Because you got in a fight with Gramps?", the younger man guessed.

"Yes, but don't worry. The man able to take my head has yet to be born."

Ace sweat-dropped. That boast wouldn't make the man anymore likeable to the pirates, who were still quite shaken by his sudden appearance.

"The sea king back then came close, Wanderer-san".

The man waved Whitebeards quip aside. "I had that under control. And we are not speaking about the past anymore." He let the cane fall and shed the cream colored jacket, that landed in a heap next to the stick. He loosened the knot of his tie and opened the two topmost buttons of his button-up shirt. The carpet rose a bit and Wanderer sat down, his feet dangling over the edge, just shy of reaching the sand with the tip of his shoes. "How about a drink?"

**TBC**


	2. Chapter 2

**A/N: Sorry for the long wait. My health took a turn for the worst and I didn't have enough energy to write anything at all. But I am on the mend now. Thank you to all readers and reviewers. I am still looking for a Beta in the One Piece fandom. This chapter was betaed by my friend again. Without her it would have taken a lot more time to write this. And your heads would spin because of all the perspective changes I had in the first version. I hope you like it. Please R&R.**

**No copyright infringement intended. The rights to Harry Potter and One Piece belong to J. K. Rowling and Eiichiro Oda respectively. The plot is mine. **

**Chapter 2**

_Last time: _

"_The sea king back then came close, Wanderer-san"._

_The man waved Whitebeards quip aside. "I had that under control. And we are not speaking about the past anymore." He let the cane fall and shed the cream colored jacket that landed in a heap next to the stick. He loosened the knot of his tie and opened the two topmost buttons of his button-up shirt. The carpet rose a bit and Wanderer sat down, his feet dangling over the edge, just shy of reaching the sand with the tip of his shoes. "How about a drink?"_

While he sat there quite relaxed and looked at Whitebeard with an open smile, the atmosphere was incredibly tense. He acknowledged it. The evening could end in people trying to hurt him, though their captain didn't seem to see him as a threat – yet. That was why Wanderer had raised the bubble of protective charms around his carpet again. Whitebeards power had made them fizzle out, but as soon as the carpet had touched the earth, Wanderer had formed them again.

In his opinion it was alright to trust Whitebeard. He had kept an eye on the man through newspaper clippings and reports from the Navy and had assessed Whitebeards progress and transformation, reading between the lines of defamation and fear. The old man hadn't changed that much since their last meeting. But he wasn't so sure about his crew. He might not look like it but Wanderer was old enough to have seen every atrocity imaginable. Even a cute little child could be deadly. So he acted on the principle 'better to be safe than sorry'.

"It is custom for the visitor to bring booze, yoi!" a young man with blond hair, shaped like the top of a pineapple, said. It was the man who had chased him in a birdlike form. He stood in front of Whitebeard. Wanderer could see that he was quite relaxed, more than he should have been, in Wanderer's opinion. Either he didn't take him as a real threat or he was assured being in his captain's presence.

"Oh?" Wanderer grinned. "As a sign of goodwill?" He looked at the captain, who just grinned back. Wanderer relaxed. "I've already given him a bottle of good, strong Firewhiskey that is only produced in my homeland", Wanderer announced to the crew. "And as I don't perceive him as a fool who would chuck it overboard because he can't open the bottle, it should still be in his possession."

His mood turned foul for a moment, thinking about the pirate captain having done just that. Redhair had been too impatient to wait for Wanderer's return and had thrown the bottle of Firewhiskey overboard in a fit of childish pique. Only his first mate diving after it had saved the captain from Wanderer's rage, who didn't like things being wasted. It was just Redhairs luck that Wanderer would arrive at that exact moment to see his gift been send flying. It hadn't been a pleasant moment for Redhair , getting a stern talking to by the much older man, but he had just such a happy-go-lucky personality that Wanderer hadn't been able to be angry for long.

"Yes, I still have it", Whitebeard said. His mien was thoughtful. "Is it the time you've spoken about back then already?"

Wanderer cocked his head. "Naw, don't you worry about that. There are still a few years to go before it comes to that point. It is just the most opportune time for me to visit. The seas are on the brink of becoming really lively and I don't know if or when I would be able to make the time to visit you again." He could sense some of the crew going back to their fires, becoming bored by the conversation, their adrenaline going back to normal levels.

Some still perceived him as a threat but as he was known to their captain who seemed friendlier than usual towards someone not in his crew, they slowly went back to their meals and beers.

Wanderer smiled. "And you can thank Firefly's little brother for that."

"He isn't old enough to leave home", Ace protested, heads swiveling in his direction followed by surprised exclamations of "Little brother?".

"Yet", Wanderer said with an evil grin.

At once Ace looked quite pale under his freckles.

"I will keep an eye on him, two when I can, if it gives you some peace of mind", Wanderer said calmingly.

Ace seemed to encourage himself and smiled. "Knowing that he will be out and about very soon makes me fear for the world and how it will survive him."

Wanderer laughed.

"Yoi, shouldn't it be the other way around? How **he** will survive the world?" the man with the pineapple shaped hair asked.

"Marco is right", Whitebeard said. "Sailing the seas is no child's play, especially the Grand Line."

Ace and Wanderer waved the concern aside. "Oh, he'll survive through sheer dumb luck", the older man said.

Ace nodded. "Otherwise he wouldn't have lived through his childhood."

The remaining crew members looked at each other and decided to let the topic rest.

"Now, how about that Firewhiskey?" Wanderer asked.

"How do you know that you won't have the time for another visit? How did you even find us?" another pirate with quite a large brown quiff asked at the same time.

That was a question they all wanted answered, but Wanderer just smiled. "Tricks of the trade. Another trick – the bottle is still on the ship, old man?"

Whitebeard nodded, a glint in his eyes that the crew couldn't interpret.

Wanderer made a twisting gesture with his hand and with a nearly silent pop there was a bottle in it. Bullets were flying in Wanderer's direction but got stopped and disintegrated by the ward bubble around his carpet.

"Twitchy, aren't they?" he asked Whitebeard with a smirk on his face. The old man laughed uproariously.

A few pirates were looking unsteadily between Whitebeard and himself, pistols still smoking in their hands. Only Whitebeard and Ace, who knew Wanderer's playful side, hadn't even twitched.

"But it was an excellent reaction time. So, no hard feelings, aye?" Wanderer said with a grin.

"Let them have a taste of that brew and all will be forgiven", Whitebeard said.

Wanderer looked at the pirate as if he wanted to ask if the man was serious. Then he shook his head and sighed. "Well, it is your bottle. Do with it what you want." He looked at the pirates around him. "If you'd be so nice, don't shoot. You'll be just wasting bullets." Waiting for a moment, until all pistols were lowered, Wanderer set the bottle aside and with another twitch of his hand he had hundreds of glasses in different shapes and sizes floating in front of him. He took the bottle and cracked the wax seal around the top, his fingers glowing for a moment. Then he started filling the glasses.

"What kind of Devil Fruit is that?"

Wanderer looked up. Alone the voice made his hackles rise. There was curiosity in it, wonderment and greed. That was quite normal. People who saw Wanderer's powers in action were always in awe and wanted something like that for themselves. They were curious how it worked. But the first emotion they always had felt, and that was missing in that man, was fear. Fear of the unknown, of the new, of Wanderer himself.

Wanderer looked up and searched for the man who had spoken. In his mind the man stood out like a sore thumb, though he was at the edge of the group around the fire. He was quite tall, though not as tall as Whitebeard, and rotund. There was something in his demeanor that raised red flags with Wanderer though he couldn't explicitly say what it was. Wanderer sent a little pulse of his power through the air to that man. It was a silent shout of 'Back off!'.

The man had straightened to his full height for a moment before he slumped down again. It happened so fast that someone could have said that Wanderer had imagined it.

Wanderer was sure there was more to that friendly facade then the other man let on.

"Wanderer-san." Whitebeards voice was like the warning grumble of a nearing thunderstorm.

Wanderer looked to him, squinting at the pirate. He himself now got a warning to back off. Whitebeard moved his head a fraction, the merest disapproving shake of the head.

Going back to filling the glasses Wanderer thought hard how to approach the captain with his misgivings. Knowing from the reports how protective the old man was about his crew, seeing them as his children, it wouldn't be an easy talk. But one that they had to have.

"It is not a Devil Fruit," he answered at last. "I was born with this power. It is unique."

"Perhaps you ate a Devil Fruit out of sight when you were too young to remember it and everyone thought you were born with a gift", the man with the quiff tried to explain.

Wanderer was torn. On one hand that was a very good and easy explanation, wrong but understandable. On the other hand it was far from the truth and that black bearded guy was giving off a very scary vibe again. He knew how Devil Fruit worked. Wanderer decided that he rather told the truth than become the victim of an attempted murder.

"No", he answered. "It is a power you have to be born with. My parents had it, my grandparents on my fathers side hat it, and so on. And it wasn't only hereditary in my family."

"Didn't you say it is unique, yoi?" Marco asked.

Wanderer sighed, closing his eyes for a moment in remembrance. Opening them again he stared hard at the pirates. "Do you know what 'normal' people do to others they don't understand, fear or are envious of?"

A few of the pirates looked uncomfortable at the implied explanation.

"But enough of that", Wanderer said, filling the last glass. He put the cork back in the bottle opening and tossed it to Whitebeard.

The pirate looked at the bottle and grinned. It was still full.

Wanderer took a tumbler out of the air and distributed the remaining glasses with a wink of his hand.

* * *

Ace watched the glasses zoom by. He remembered Wanderer-ojisan's principle of "First come, First served" very well from his childhood. At least he was more gracious about it then Dadan or her bandits. So he zoned in on a big mug that was flying in the middle of smaller glasses and picked it out of the air.

Hearing Pop's laughter he looked around. Marco, Thatch and Jozu looked quite displeased. All three, even the much taller Jozu, held a small glass. Ace shrugged, holding his mug tighter. Wanderer-ojisan gave him a knowing look, silent laughter in his eyes.

Ace looked down on the glass. Something had aggravated Wanderer-ojisan. No, not something, someone. He didn't quite understand what the man's deal with Teach was.

Though the pirate could be creepy and overzealous while fighting he was one of the good guys. Teach would have been the more logical choice for the position of second division commander, having served much longer as a Whitebeard pirate. But he hadn't wanted the position and was now one of Ace's subordinates. The young man trusted him with his life.

But Wanderer-ojisan's reaction wouldn't leave Ace's mind. He knew quite well that the other man had a good eye for ascertaining the personalities and character flaws of others. On the other hand he hadn't always been right with a first impression. Ace didn't quite know what he should think.

He would talk with Pops about it and keep an eye on Teach, perhaps he could discover what had made Wanderer-ojisan so distrustful of him.

"KANPAI!"

The cheer rang through the air and Ace nearly let his glass fall. He had been so deep in thought that he hadn't seen everyone having their drink already in hand. He sniffed the alcohol, it seemed harmless. Hopefully it would be good.

Ace drank it down in one gulp, watching the others around him. Most did it like him and all seemed to appreciate the taste and the smooth texture. It didn't seem too potent.

Pops had opened the bottle and taken a healthy sip. He toasted Wanderer-ojisan with the bottle and seemed pleased with the quality. The other man took only small sips himself. It must have been an illusion but it looked like steam was coming from his head.

Somebody coughed. Then somebody else asked for water with an unusual gravelly voice. Steam was coming from open mouths and out of ears.

Ace looked to his fellow commanders. Marco didn't seem to feel a thing and Jozu looked also quite unimpressed though there was steam coming out of his mouth. Thatch was sweating like he had run a marathon under an unforgiving sun and his eyes were watering.

Then Ace felt it.

Having eaten the mera mera no mi his body always was at a comfortable temperature. He had no need for warm clothes, even in the middle of a snowstorm on a Winter Island. But now his body was becoming unbearable hot. The aftertaste of the alcohol was very strong. He thumped his chest to loosen up some of the tightness that sat there.

Ace's eyes widened and he raised his head, burping a darting flame into the sky.

"Fire Whiskey indeed", Pops said and fell into the uproarious laughter of the other pirates.

Wanderer-ojisan was looking dumbfounded at him. That look was a first. Ace laughed with his crew.

**TBC**


End file.
